US910432A - Controlling device for motor-vehicles. - Google Patents

Description

T. L. 6: T. J. STURTBVANT. CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR MOTOR VEHICLES.

APPLIOATIOH FILED AUG. 8. 1907.

Patented Jan. 19, 1909.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THOMAS LEGGETT STURTEVANT, OF QUINCY, AND THOMAS JOSEPH STURTEVANT, OF

OONTROLLDIG DEVICE FOR MOTOBFVEEIOIEB.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 19, 1909.

mall whom-it-maq comem:

Beit known that we, Tnouas L. S'ron'mum and Tnomas J. STURTEVANT, citizens of the United States, residing, respectively at Quincy and Wellesle in the count of Norfolk and State of assachusetts, ave -invented or discovered certain new and useful lmprovements in Controlling Devices for Motor-Vehicles, of which the following is a specification, reference being bad therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention has for its object to provide a simple controllin device for motor -vehicles so'that, through the medium of a s'heel-and-toe or double-acting pedal device, which may be operated by one foot of the driver, power may be turned on, to start the machine, and the brake be released; or, conversely, when the machine is running, the power may be shut off and the brake applied ,to arrest the-movement of the vehicle. To the end the double-actin pedal-device is preferably connected to t e power-controlmg devlce of a motor vehicle, as the throttle g3 arm-or lever, in such a manner that by a ressure of'the toe or ball portion of the oot'the power may be turned on and the brake be released, and by a pressure of the died the power may be turned ofi and the soibrake applied.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a sectional elevation illustrative of the invention in connection with a motor-vehicle hydro-carbon engine and clutch device and s5 gear-in and Fi 2 is a detail view illustrative o -a somew at different form of the invention from that shown in Fig. 1.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, 12

denotes a hydro-carbon or internal-combus 'taon'engme, which may be of any suitable or well-known constructiomand 13 denotes the arm or lever of a power-controllin or throttle valve which regulates the supp y of aseous' fuel to the engine, such gaseous fue be- -'ing supplied from a carbureter 14 which na 'be of any well-known construction. *Slutablypivoted, as'onarod or pin 15 on the foot board of the machine isa heel-andtoeor double actingpedal 16 having an arm by a rod 18 with the throttle armorllever 13. The arm 17 is also conmeoted by and 19 with a brake lever 20 by 'which abraking force may beappliedio a brake drum or wheel 21- by means of a fric- The braking device herein partly shown is, or may be, substantial] the same as that fully described in our S. Patent No. 838,061, granted December '11, 1906, a and in which the power of a driven shaft-is utilized to apply the brake so that only a ve slight amount of manual poweris requir in operating the brake lever.

, In the mechanism herein illustrated the fly-wheel 23 is suitably connected with the crank shaft of the engine, so as to rotate therewith, the said fly-wheel normally runnin loose relative to the ower-transmitting sha t 24, and the said wheel is operatively connected with said shaft when the vehicle is to be driven, through the medium of multi le-disk friction clutch-devices 25 which wi 1 be in frictional clutching engagement, to cause the shaft 24 to be driven, when the fly-wheel reaches a certain predetermined speed of rotation, such frictional clutch en agement being efl'ected by weighted centri ugal levers 26 operating in o osition to clutch-releasing springs 27. 's automatic clutch device is essentially the same in its princi 1c of operation as that shown and descri ed in our :Patent No. 766,551, granted Aug. 2 1904, although, 3 ecifically, the said clutch device is 1i eat which is shown and describedin our allowed applications, No. 353,338, filed Jan. 21, 1907, and No. 365,055, filed March 28, 1907. In this particular form of our improved clutch de ice there is. provided a lever 28 b which the driver may control or restrain t 1e automatic action of the clutch device, or, in other words, the automatic clutch devi-cis sup lemcnted by a manual-control device. he term automatic clutch device as em loyed in the claims of this case will there ore be understood to refer to a clutch device in which the clutehingoand unclutching-o tions are normally efi'ected automatical y as by centrifugal :foroe'or otherwise, who or such automatic action be-supplementetllor controlled by manual actionor not. Also in 'the -form of "the invention -herein 'ilh 1strated the ower-transmittin shaft 24 .is connected with the driving aft 29'ofthe vehicle through. a suitable chwnge-speed and reversing gear 'mechanism contained within the gear box 80,-and similar in construction and operation to the gearing mechanism fully described in our said Patent "No.

- 466,551; said gearing mechanism comprising the counter-shaft 31 to which the brake wheel or drum 21 is attached.

It is preferable, although not absolutely necessary, that means should be provided for normally holding the edal 16 m a neutral position. To this en a rod 32 is pivotally attached at one end to the arm 17 on the said pedal, the said rod passing through a bracket or loop 33 on opposite sides of which, and interposed between nuts or collars 34 on said rod, are coil springs 35 which serve, as will be understood, to normally retain the pedal 16 in its neutral position as shown in t e drawing. The arm 17 is preferably loosely connected with the throttlelever operating-rod 18, by means of a pin 36 on said arm workin in a slot 37 on said rod, so as to provide or a suitable amount of lost motion between the said arm and said rod. Also, as it is desirable not to entirely shut off the power from the engine, so that the latter may continue to run slowly when the automatic clutch device is disengaged or released, a stop-pin 39 is preferably provided to limit the closing movement of the throttle arm or lever 13, the final stoping of the engine being preferably effected y breaking the sparking circuit rather than by entirely closing the throttle valve.

In the form of our invention shown in Fig, 2 the double-actingmpedal device comprises two independent l-crank levers 40 and 41, the lever 40 bein connected with the throttle arm or lever day a rod 42 and the lever 41 being connected with the brake device by a rod 43; ull-back s rings 44 and 46 being preferab ly provided to hold the said levers in their neutral positions against sto s 47 and 48, respectively. It will be un erstood, of course, that in connection with the form of the double acting pedal device, shown in Fig. 2, a brake an a throttle arm or lever, to which the said pedal device may be connected, as shownin ig. 1, will be employed; and that an automatic clutch device, such as shown in Fig. 1, or its e uivalent, will also preferably be emplyed in connection with this form of the invention.

From the foregoing it will be understood that by means of a single heel-and-toe or double-actin pedal device, requiring only one foot of t e driver for its positive operation in both directions the power may be turned on and the brake released, or, vice versa, the power may be shut ofi and the brake a plied. If a rake device by which the braking force is to be applied by the driver be employed, this heel-and-toe pedal device Wiii be particuiariy desirabie, as w-iii be understood, for the reason that 3! powerful braking action may be appxlie y the driver through the medium of t e heel pressure which may be exerted; and if an auto matic brake device, such as is herein partly steam,

illustrated, arid by which the movement of a running shaft is to be utilized in applying the brake, this heel-and-toe or double-acting mechanism will likewise be found convenient and efficient.

We do not wish to be understood as limiting our invention to the details herein shown, as the articular forms of the engine, the clutch device or the brake device herein illustrated are not of the essence of our invention, and any well known equivalents for these features 'may be substituted for those herein set forth without de arting from the essence of our invention, w ich, it will be understood, is equally applicable to motor vehicles emplo ing steam engines or electric motors in that the pedal device loyed for operating the powercontrolling evices thereof in turnin the or the electric current, on or o in a manner analo ous to that by which the ower is turne on or ofi in the construction iierein illustrated by opening or closing the throttle-valve of the hydrocarbon engine in connection with which we preferably apply our invention.

It will of course be understood that the term heel-and-toe as herein used with might be em reference to the double-acting pedal device applies equally to the single-element edaldevice shown in Fig. 1 and the doub e element pedal device shown in Fig. 2 and in which latter the toe or ball portion of the foot element of the said eda device is operative inde endently o the heel element of said eda device; and it will also be understoo that the term heel-and-toe as herein used with reference to the doubleactin pedal device will mean a dal device to w ich pressure may be app ied by the ball portion or forward sole portion of the foot, in addition to the pressure which may be applied to the heel portion of the same foot of the driver.

Having thus described our invention we claim and desire to secure by Letters Pat ent:

1. In a motor vehicle, the combination with a power-controllin device and an automatic clutch device, 0 a brake device by which movement of the vehicle may be restrained or arrested, a heeland-toe or double-actin pedal device, and connections between sai pedal device and said owercontrolling and brake devices; where y, by the movement of one foot, the power may be turned on and the brake released, or vice versa.

2. Ina motor vehicle, the combination with a ower-controiiing device, of a brake deyice y which movement of the vehicle may be restrained or arrested, a heel-and-toe or double-acting pedal device, springs for normally holding said ped al-device in a neutral position, and connections between said edal device and said power-controlling and rake devices; whereb by the movement of one foot, the power may be turned on and the brake released, or vice versa.

3. In a motor vehicle, the combination with a power-controllin device and an automatic clutch device, 0 a brake device by which movement of the vehicle may be restrained or arrested, a heeland toe or double-acting pedal device, springs for nor mally holding said pedal-device in a neutral sosition, and connections between said pedal evice and said power-controlling and brake-devices; whereby, by the movement of one foot, the power may be turned on and the brake released, or vice versa.

4. In a motor vehicle, the combination with an engine or motor, of a power-controlling device therefor, an automatic clutch device, a brake device, and a double-acting or heel and toe pedal device connected with said power-controlling and brake devices and adapted to be positively actuated in opposite directions; whereby, by the movement of one foot, the power may be turned on and the brake released, or vice versa, accordin to Whether toe or heel pressure be applie 5. In a motor-vehicle, the combination with an engine or motor, of a power-controlling device therefor, an automatic clutch device, a brake device, a double-acting or heeland-toe pedal device connected with said power-controlling and brake devices and adapted to be positively actuated in opposite directions, and springs for holding said heel-and-toe pedal device in a neutral position; whereby, by the opposite movements of one foot, the power may be turned on and the brake released, or vice versa, according to whether toe or heel pressure be applied.

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures, in presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS LEGGETT STURTEVANT. THOMAS JOSEPH STURTEVANT.

Witnesses:

W. H. ELLIS, L. H. STURTEVANT.

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